In a recent survey of 2,000 Canadians, 40% of potential homeowners say they plan to move or change where they live in the next five years. Aspiring homeowners may be putting their dream of homeownership on hold because of the inflexible nature of a conventional mortgage and homeownership. The reality about conventional homeownership with a mortgage is that it can be difficult to exit should you need to move or if your life circumstances change. Depending on your mortgage, you’d be looking at mortgage break fees, which can be quite expensive. If you’re not sure of your time horizon, there are other costs associated with selling real estate that you’ll want to consider before purchasing a home. If you’re looking for a more flexible lifestyle but don’t want to be locked out of owning and building home equity, co-ownership may be a solution to consider.

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Co-ownership enables mobility

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As a co-owner, after your first year, you can leave with just 75-days’ notice. You’ll get your initial investment plus any appreciation back. As with all real estate investments, you are taking the risk of your suite depreciating as well. Keep in mind that If you want to move in your first year, there is a 5% penalty, so it’s best to know that you want to live in the suite for at least a year before becoming a co-owner.

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Co-ownership enables improved capital flexibility  

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With a required 5-20% down payment, traditional homeownership can easily tie up most of your money. Plus, as a first-time homebuyer, it can take years and years to save up for this initial investment. Co-ownership has more flexible and accessible requirements than purchasing a home with a conventional mortgage. At Key, as a co-owner, your initial investment is only 2.5%, which is around $15k for most of Key’s suites, this means that not only do you not need to spend years and years saving for a down payment, but you’ll also have more freedom to spend money on things that are important to you. Plus with Key, there is no mortgage which means you don’t need to worry about servicing your debt and rising interest rates.

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Build home equity at your own pace

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Co-ownership enables you to build home equity at your own pace. $50 of your monthly payment automatically goes to growing your equity, but you can contribute more on a monthly basis; it’s completely up to you! One of the best parts about co-ownership is the more of your suite that you own, the lower your monthly payment will be.  Co-ownership has become an option for Torontonians, you can learn more about why they are embracing this more flexible style of homeownership. If you’re curious to learn more about how our model works, join us for an upcoming webinar–you can register here.